Mark Glover's blog includes reviews of the latest motor vehicles introduced for sale in the United States, his take on various aspects of the auto industry and periodic insights on auto racing at home and abroad.

Friday, February 21, 2014

This pair of Fords affordable, capable

Mark Glover’s AutoGlo
car reviews also can be seen on the Business page of The Sacramento Bee’s website – via the “GALLERY: Reviews of new cars” link at
www.sacbee.com/business

Sacramento,
California – Today is double-duty,
blue oval day, looking at a couple of affordable Ford passenger cars that have
been helping the American automaker boost sales in multiple markets.

Ford has been very clever in the perk-heavy, good fuel
mileage, affordable passenger car niche, and the Ford Focus is Exhibit A in
that department.My tester, a 2014 Ford
Focus Titanium hatchback (pictured), was well stocked at a starting price of
$24,115.A few extras pushed the bottom
line to $26,300, but the basic offering suited me just fine.

Power is provided by a 2-liter, four-cylinder,
160-horsepower engine that was peppy enough to handle all the chores and
delivered an advertised 27 miles per gallon in the city and 37 mpg on the
highway.Very nice numbers, indeed.

My ride looked sharp and streamlined, even in relatively
mild-looking Sterling Gray Metallic skin, and the extra cash for 18-inch alloy
wheels was worth it, in my view.Interior room was not cavernous, but adequate for even backseat
riders.Vision all around from the
cockpit was exceptional.

The Titanium’s list of standard features was generous,
including reverse-sensing/rearview camera feature, four-wheel disc brakes and
puddle lamps.You don’t see a lineup
like that on a lot of “affordable” models.

Overall, this is a B-plus car all the way.For young folks trying to hold the price line
on their first “family” car, it likely gets an A grade.

Moving on to the 2014 Ford Fiesta SE, my week in the car
produced a mixed bag of results, most of them positive.

The bargain curve is steeper in the Fiesta lineup.You can have the most basic model starting at
$14,600.An SE sedan will run you
$15,450, and an SE hatchback runs just slightly more than that.

Again, the Fiesta is pretty well equipped for the
price.And it’s loaded with safety
features, including a hill-start assist control, traction control, electronic
stability control and a vehicle stability management system.

The small power plant only puts out about 120 horsepower,
which will get you about 30 miles per gallon on city streets and 40 mpg on the
open road.

You’d think that I wouldn’t have a problem handling 120
horsepower.You’d be wrong.

Auto Enthusiasts

About

Mark Glover has been a professional journalist for 40 years. Since 1984, he has worked for The Sacramento Bee in California's capital city. He was the paper's auto editor from 2000-08, reviewing hundreds of motor vehicles during that time. His reviews currently appear at sacbee.com and in the Northern & Central California Cruisin' News published monthly out of Folsom, California. He is a former director on the board of the California Autombile Museum in Sacramento. A lifelong auto racing fan, Glover has attended the Indianapolis 500 since 1961. He has an extensive Indy 500 collection of programs, tickets and badges.